Peculiarities of compensation for damages caused by Russian aggression against Ukraine: theoretical and legal aspect

Abstract

According to the author, with the development of society, various forms of compensation for damage caused as a result of war crimes have developed. Such forms include contribution, reparation, confiscation, restitution, and substitution, which were applied after the end of armed aggression.
During this research, attention should be paid to legal, organizational and procedural mechanisms. Thus, the following should be included among the legal (legal) ones: 1) discretion of the parties - used in cases where bilateral peace agreements often abandon demands for reparations and seek new peace agreements, rather than trying to collect the «full» cost of the war; 2) payment of reparations - arises as a result of a violation of the UN Charter on the use of force and creates grounds for reparations as a result of an internationally illegal act; 3) full compensation for damages - an example of this is the fact that the UN Security Council has repeatedly recognized that in the event of invasion and occupation, the states responsible for such aggression are obliged to make full compensation for damages.
Among the number of institutional (organizational-institutional) it is appropriate to single out the following: 1) the activity of the UN Commission on the consideration of claims in the case of Ukraine is, in fact, a mechanism created by the United Nations, which could both accept claims and distribute funds from frozen and confiscated assets for the benefit of victims of the war in Ukraine. It could mirror some of the similar experience of the United Nations Commission on Claims for the Iraqi Invasion of Kuwait, and would allow individuals, corporations and other legal entities to file claims for damages they have suffered, including violations of personal integrity, investment losses and property damage; 2) The Ukrainian National Reparations Directorate is a national reparation program that would provide for a number of measures to compensate victims. It should consist of three parts: the basic legal framework; administrative body with a register and the interdepartmental coordinating body.
Procedural mechanisms should provide for: 1) evidence of victims’ losses and evidence for verification can use their own digital data repositories, such as personal photographs and reallocation data, which must be uploaded with any form of statement in support of their claims. The database and registry can be built on the basis of corroborating such claims with data already available in Ukrainian state archives, such as land title documents, medical records and identity documents; 2) it is necessary to pay attention to the measures for the preservation, storage and protection of data to ensure confidentiality and avoid repeated victimization; 3) special attention should be paid to the forms of documents.